Fix the Pumps is a historical account of the golden era of soda fountains including over 450 recipes that made soda America's most popular drink.

This book is the first comprehensive, documented history of this popular institution, which millions of Americans fondly remember. For 150 years, the soda fountain was a community social center. In big cities, the neighborhood fountain had a clubby atmosphere because it drew its clientele from nearby businesses and apartment buildings. In small towns, soda fountains were very democratic because they attracted all ages and all classes of people. In both cities and small towns, soda fountains were part of the social infrastructure that held the neighborhood together. The evolution of the soda fountain reflected momentous developments in American history: urbanization, the temperance movement and Prohibition, the Great Depression, technological progress, the decline of Main Street and Center City, the Car Culture, and the growth of suburbia. The fountain's evolution was also closely tied to trends in retailing, food service, lifestyles, and the decorative arts.

The iconic restaurant chain that defined Americana by introducing twenty-eight flavors of ice cream, “tendersweet” clam strips, grilled “frankforts,” and more. Popularly known as the “Father of the Franchise Industry,” Howard Johnson delivered good food and fair prices—a winning combination that brought appreciative customers back for more. The attractive white Colonial Revival restaurants, with eye-catching porcelain tile roofs, illuminated cupolas, and sea blue shutters, were described in Reader’s Digest in 1949 as the epitome of “eating places that look like New England town meeting houses dressed up for Sunday.” Learn how Johnson created an orange-roofed empire of ice cream stands and restaurants that stretched from Maine to Florida . . . then all the way across the country.

The bygone tools and products of America's drugstores are illustrated in color and described, from apothecary jars to patent medicines and mortars and pestles to leech jars. Soda fountain dispensers, dishes, and furniture of many styles are prominently presented. One will happily remember the old stores and the amazing variety contained in them.

Welcome to the age of effervescence. Throughout history and across America today, seltzer's fizzy flavor has attracted a loyalty and passion that often defies logic. Seltzer is more popular now than at any time in history, reflecting the cultural desires of those who partake of its bubbles. How did such an ordinary drink become so extraordinary?

Ever wonder why the ice cream sundae is spelled with a dae instead of a day? You'll find the answer to that and dozens more pop-culture trivia questions, all featured with nostalgic photos and illustrations. Soda Fountain Wisdom is one of a two-book series titled Retro Moments. These titles recall the days when Mom and Dad were teens. Old-fashioned photos and illustrations on every page appear with pithy quotations and comical quips drawn mainly from mid-twentieth-century writers-or with brief, entertaining one-page essays that give historical background to many aspects of twentieth-century pop culture. Retro Moments make great gift books, but bookstore gift-buyers probably will take home extra copies for themselves. These delightful little books carry their readers back to the days of drive-ins, roadside diners, fin-tailed convertibles, and the bright magazine advertisements of yesteryear.